Don't shun Indonesia's soldiers

In its war on terrorism, the U.S. is guilty of a very serious oversight. It needs to promptly reconsider a needless ban, imposed by the U.S. Congress in 1999, on military-to-military contacts between America and Indonesia.

This broad but not absolute injunction was supposed to motivate the Indonesian military to accept civilian control and to bring those responsible for atrocities in East Timor to justice. There has been some progress on both these fronts, although probably it has had little to do with the U.S. ban. Yet there remains resistance in Congress to lifting it.

The fundamental question that needs to be asked is whether the supposed U.S. goal of inducing the Indonesian military to become more apolitical, professional, and disciplined will be furthered by the absence of contact with America's professional soldiers? Or will it be achieved more slowly, or perhaps not at all? The answer seems obvious to us. Moreover, the U.S. is missing a chance to win friends among moderates in the Indonesian officer corps and to gain vital help from them in fighting terrorism in a large, potentially unstable Asian nation.

Military influence within the government has waned and in the long term will continue to wane. However, in the interest of fostering national unity, President Megawati Soekarnoputri has brought the generals into her inner circle, ensuring that they will have a significant say in all policies.

There are some signs that both Megawati and the generals allied to her would like to recreate some aspects of the Soeharto-era alliance between the ruling party and the military. However, resistance to this will likely come both from within the ranks and from broader society. U.S. engagement of the military could help to consolidate the reforms made so far and strengthen the institutions needed for civilian control.

Terrorist threats are no joke. Indonesians have traditionally practiced a moderate form of Islam, but in recent years more radical groups like the Laskar Jihad have sprung up, receiving support from some factions of the military. It has emerged a plot by al-Qaeda-linked forces to attack the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta was foiled last year, and Indonesians were involved in regional networks which had tentacles in Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines.

The Megawati government hasn't been as aggressive as the U.S. would like in monitoring these activists and arresting them when enough evidence of their plans can be collected. Last December an appropriations bill opened the way for the U.S. to resume a modest amount of counter-terrorism training for Indonesians, and the U.S. military is doing all it can to remain engaged with Jakarta while remaining within the letter of the law. But it shouldn't have to operate this way.

Indonesia has long been a key U.S. friend in Southeast Asia, and despite the occasional hiccups, it has made remarkable progress toward democracy in recent years. That the U.S. is hampering its own efforts to promote reform and stability at precisely the moment when it could do the most good is a serious mistake that should be rectified quickly.

-- The Asian Wall Street Journal, Hong Kong